What Is DUI – Driving Under the Influence

Periodic public service announcements appear in print, and on radio and television with the warning, “Don’t Drink And Drive”. They further warn of impending penalties if arrested on the charge of Driving Under the Influence, or DUI. Find cheap sr22 insurance on our website.

What is DUI? The commonly used abbreviation, D.U.I, legally referred to in the State of California as 23102 A of the Motor Vehicle Code translates quite literally. You do not have to be drunk driving to be stopped, tested, arrested, charged and brought to trial in a court of law. You merely have to be “driving under the influence” and exhibit a degree of “impaired” driving behavior, to become a participant in one or all stages of those proceedings. Highway fatalities increase each year, many of the deaths are caused by drinking drivers, and the solutions seem to be nowhere in sight.

Drunk Driving

In years passed the legal violation was “502” of the California Motor Vehicle Code, and referred to in legal circles as a “deuce”. It was the charge of drunk driving, chemically substantiated by a blood alcohol level of .15% which was defined as—”definitely intoxicated”. Less than .15% you were considered to be: “assumed to be intoxicated” and various other categories less severe below the level of .10% blood alcohol.

When the legislature demanded a more stringent view and enforcement of tougher guidelines, the MVC 502 was discarded in favor of MVC 23102 A, and under this new concept a blood alcohol level of. 10% is defined as “definitely impaired”. This gave new and increased powers to the courts, and an inspired motivation for Law Enforcement Agencies’ crack down on the drinking driver. Arrests and convictions increased, still unable to keep pace with the increasing numbers of drinking drivers, and subsequent vehicular homicide.

Let us look at this dilemma under the microscope as it were—a Dilemma Under Inspection. We have never been able to comprehend the existence of parking lots for the patrons of taverns, bars, discos, restaurants and any other establishment which serves alcohol to the public. Since no one disputes the premise that alcohol and drunk driving are a dangerous combination, would it not be logical to outlaw the construction, use, and existence of a parking facility for these locations?

It would appear evident that a lack of parking convenience would reduce patronage, thereby reducing the alcohol sales and the danger. BUT would the brewers, distillers, and distributors sit still for legislation which effects sales in the private enterprise system? Could the small business community and the general economy handle reduced drinking habits, and the resulting layoffs of employees who work as parking attendants, bartenders, waitresses and waiters. And then there is the domino effect upon related business activity, which must be considered.

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Find cheap sr22 insurance online. Compare quotes now! Cigarette and snack vendors must certainly be hurt. Dinner restaurants would suffer the decline in food sales causing the chain reaction in the food industries. Night Clubs would go bust. Entertainers, musicians, theatrical and advertising agencies should be strongly effected. Secretaries, bookkeepers, printers, salesmen, warehouse employees, newspapers, and on and on—all in one way or another would be effected by a ban on parking lots where booze is served.

What Is DUI? To sum it up, DUI is defined as operating a motor vehicle with an amount of alcohol sufficient to impair your ability to operate a motor vehicle safely. The law also makes it a separate crime to drive above the limit of .08% alcohol in your blood.